Sanjeev Bhaskar makes information-heavy dialogue worth listening to, especially alongside Nicola Walker. We value the steadiness he brings to drama, but Unforgotten asks more of its actors than they can reasonably put right.
Fi1m perspective
In Unforgotten (2015), Sanjeev Bhaskar gives us a reason to listen even when the dialogue is busy explaining the case. His DS Sunil ‘Sunny’ Khan brings a steadiness to the police scenes that the rest of the programme struggles to match. Working alongside Nicola Walker’s DCI Cassie Stuart, he makes us want to spend time with the detectives. We were frustrated when the story left them, because the other strands kept interrupting that interest. That is a recommendation for the performances, with reservations about the series.
His earlier television work drew on a different skill: finding comedy in British Asian stereotypes and family life. The Secret Asians, his mid-1990s comedy partnership with Nitin Sawhney, led towards Goodness Gracious Me (1998). He co-created that sketch series and the spoof chat show The Kumars at No. 42 (2001), in which he played Sanjeev Kumar. Those programmes established him as a comic performer before the move towards leading dramatic roles.
With The Indian Doctor (2010), he took the lead as Dr Prem Sharma in a period comedy-drama set in 1960s Wales. A supporting role as Jed Malik in Danny Boyle’s Yesterday (2019) belongs to another continuing part of his work, taking smaller parts in films alongside his television leads. But Unforgotten gives us the clearest reason to value the move into drama. His partnership with Walker makes scenes burdened with information worth watching, without making the strain in the writing disappear.
The writing is the reason for our caution. The first series spreads itself across too many characters, and some of their emotional stories remain unfinished; Bhaskar cannot repair that within his own scenes. He remains watchable when our interest in the case wanders, which is useful for the programme and less satisfying for us. Try Unforgotten for the partnership, but expect to spend longer away from it than we would have liked.
Biography
Sanjeev Bhaskar OBE is a British actor, comedian and television presenter. Born on 31 October 1963 in Ealing, London, he is known for his work in sketch comedy, notably the BBC series Goodness Gracious Me, and as the star of the sitcom The Kumars at No. 42 (2001–2006). He presented the documentary series India with Sanjeev Bhaskar.
Bhaskar has taken dramatic roles including Dr Prem Sharma in The Indian Doctor and DI Sunny Khan in the ITV series Unforgotten (2015–). His film credits include Notting Hill (1999), Yesterday (2019) and Paddington 2 (2017). He was appointed an OBE in 2006 and has served as chancellor of the University of Sussex since 2009. He is married to actress Meera Syal.
